Counting Stars
by stormy.grace
Summary: Sam and Brooke have a little heart-to-heart about their relationship. Great summary, right? In my defense it's a very short story, and I don't want to give away the whole thing in the summary.


Sam had wandered outside after dinner, and Brooke wanted to make sure he was okay. He had been in a weird mood for the last few days, so she excused herself and left the others to enjoy their board game while she walked out into the cold night air to find Sam.

"Hey." she said, sitting down beside him in the backyard of the house he was sharing with Gabriel. "Too disapproving in there for you?"

"Your mom really doesn't like me, does she?" he asked.

"No, and I can't figure out why." Brooke replied. "I mean, I get that she doesn't want me and Trevor to get hurt, but I thought she would've realized by now that you're not going to hurt us. Not on purpose anyway."

"No." Sam said quickly. "Never on purpose. But I can't really blame her for being so..."

"Rude?"

Sam chuckled. "Protective."

"If that's what you wanna call it."

"I love Trevor." Sam said. "And I care about you a lot." He didn't want to say he loved her because he wasn't sure he did. He knew he didn't have much of a choice since she was his soulmate, and he wanted to love her, but part of him was afraid to love her.

"But?" she prompted.

"But my track record with women isn't all that great." he admitted. "Actually, it sucks. Really bad. I think your mom's right to be so wary of me. Most of the women I've been involved with have ended up either hurt or dead. Mostly dead. Even the ones I wasn't romantically involved with. My mom's dead because of me, and so is Charlie. I don't want to add you to that list."

Brooke had suspected that might be the reason he was holding back. Yes, she had wanted to take things slowly because this was a very strange situation, but after Dean and Meredith's wedding it seemed like he was pulling away from her. She was ready to at least consider taking their relationship to the next level, but all of a sudden it was like something had spooked him.

"Sam, I want you to listen very carefully to what I'm about to say."

He looked at her to show that she had his attention.

"I understand that you're afraid we might get hurt if you stay, but if you so much as _think_ about leaving I'm gonna be the one hurting you." she said. "And not just because Trevor would be upset if you left. I don't care what my mother thinks. I want you in this family, Sam."

"What if something happens, Brooke?"

"I'm not worried about that." she answered honestly. "I know you're not gonna hurt us, and if anything comes after us you'll protect us. I don't care what happened in the past. I trust you to keep us safe. So forget my mother, forget the bad things that have happened, and forget soulmates. None of that matters. What matters is that you have a family here that needs you."

"I don't even have a job, Brooke." he argued. "How am I supposed to support a family?"

Brooke smiled. "Did I say anything about you supporting us? We can figure all of that out later. Right now I just want you to stop worrying about what has happened and what might happen, and just enjoy having a family."

Sam smiled and put his arm around her when she leaned against him. "I think I can do that."

"Good." She kissed his cheek and then smiled, knowing he was blushing a little even though it was too dark to really tell. "How about we let Ma or Gabriel babysit tomorrow night, and we go out to dinner just the two of us? My treat."

"Well, it would have to be your treat because I don't have any money right now." Sam said.

"Is that a yes?"

Sam smiled. "Yes, Brooke. I would love to go out with you tomorrow night."

She smiled back and they stayed outside for a little longer, counting the stars for a while before going back in to watch the rest of the family play Trouble.

 **Aw! Benchester feels! Aren't they adorable? Actually, this could turn out to be a bigger story. Sam and Brooke have unfortunately been in the background pretty much this entire time, and I feel guilty about that. I think they deserve some time in the spotlight, and I'm gonna see what I can do about that. I'd also like to focus a little more on Cas at some point, and maybe even Gabriel. So basically I don't have any plans of this series ending any time soon. But no promises. ~SG**

 **P.S.** **I Am Here For You is a new campaign being launched over Fanfiction and social media for anyone that needs a helping hand. IAHFY is a safe haven for anyone that is going through tough times and situations and is in need of someone to open up to without fearing judgment. Anything said will remain completely confidential. Just look for the IAHFY logo in the profile picture (check my profile picture to know what you're looking for) and send us a PM. We will be happy to help you out with anything you need, from advice to just being someone to vent to. #IAHFY**


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